i had this blouse in my most recent 30 for 30, but it didn’t get much play. it doesn’t layer great, because of the wider sleeves, which was part of the problem. these things don’t always occur to me when selecting 30 items at once, you know? as mild as winter was this year, i still needed sleeves.

ah, i think of this as my molly ringwald outfit.. the shape of the shirt reminds me of her breakfast club outfit, and i totally feel like she could’ve rocked these boots in any of her 80’s movies. i’m pretty sure this blouse is from the ’80’s, actually, as i remember it came with a matching long lace skirt, which in retrospect, maybe i should’ve gotten as well, and hemmed it into something i would wear. seperately, of course. it’s really fine with me if the matching shirt & skirt 1980’s faux-dress never returns to style. just watch, i’ll be forced to eat those words eventually. but for now i stand by them. and even though i’ve seen 2 or 3 acceptable rompers, i still can’t get behind them as a fashion for grown women.

here’s the baby blanket i’m working on:

brooklyn tweed’s wool leaves pattern, elsebeth lavold silky wool in celery held double with size 10 needles. the gender is unknown as of now, so i tried to keep it fairly gender neutral. yellow-green, with the slight rustic tweediness counter balancing the lace, which isn’t like really *lacey*, mostly just kind of lovely.

Like this:

okay i actually wore this outfit on saturday. but i’m posting it on sunday, so… that’s cool, right?

i saw this feature somewhere on the interweb, the outfit that entirely made up of thrifted/secondhand items, and i think that’s a cool idea.

secondhand:old navy thrifted blouseforever21 jacket that used to belong to a frienddelia’s black jeans from plato’s closet

not secondhand:forever21 bow earringsold navy sandals

i’ve been living my life without any black pants for at least a year now, which is a less than ideal state as far as i’m concerned. and thrifting for pants is an iffy endeavor. so when i was in the neighborhood, i hit up plato’s closet, and found these for $10. which is more than i would pay thrifting, but still significantly less than first hand. so: win!

my bangs were acting weird. so rather than mess with them, i french braided them.

Like this:

dinner! bangers and mash! with baked beans and beer! i forgot to take this picture right away, so i’d had one bite…

day 22- kitchen sink

you’ve seen it before, and you’ll see it again. i found that marble cutting board thrifting. i like that it adds a bit of luxe to the kitchen. before moving into this apartment, i’d never really had my own kitchen, as i was always sharing with my grandparents or roommates. it caught me by surprise just how much i love having a kitchen, collecting cooking tools or random kitchen-y things (i have a surplus of cream pitchers & sugar bowls. and salt & pepper shakers. and teapots.) i love thinking about use of the space, and the best layout, and making tiny improvements. and while i never minded cooking before, having a kitchen of my own really made me enjoy puttering around and cooking more. i still have a lot to learn about cooking, but i do much more, much better than i did before.

in other news, remember this hat that i made? and how i sent it to vanawesone? well, he just made a video that very heavily features the hat i made him! so… i’m sharing it with you guys!

this awesome print (from jenskelley’s etsy shop) is just a stand-in for the color i’ve become a little obsessed with recently (1, 2, 3, 4). previously delegated in my mind to retired ladies who are passionate about the game of golf and wintering in florida, coral has now worked its way into my ‘love’ column.

with my recent spate of thrifting, i have been keeping my eyes sharp for the perfectly perfect pair of worn in penny loafers… i haven’t found them yet, but i live in hope.

8 pieces, 8 outfits

what would a nerd wear has been doing some traveling recently. and while traveling, she has undertaken the 8 pieces, 8 outfits challenge. the first one is pictured above (click on the pic for the full post) and the second one is here. what a fantastic way to mix it up in your wardrobe without the intensity of commitment that comes with a 30 for 30!

Like this:

why wasn’t this sky happening on the day that ‘clouds’ was my assignment?

i haven’t been sharing much of my knitting recently. there’s no real reason that i haven’t been sharing it, except that i haven’t been taking many pictures of it. but everyday i’m working away on something or another.

for example, i finished this sock! and cast on for the second! i made a mistake on the sole, that i’m hoping i can block out. fingers crossed! the pattern is glynis from cookie a’s sock innovation. these socks are for someone with very different sized feet than i, and i’m toying with the idea of diy-ing some sock blockers for them… maybe bent wire ones from a hanger? or, if i just want some one time use ones, cutting them out of cardboard?

i’ve been more adventurous in my online yarn ordering recently. i already had three skeins of elsebeth lavold silky wool in the celery colorway, but i needed a few more for a project. the rowan calmer is the color called ‘tinkerbell’, and it’s going to be mitts for my mother in law, who looks awesome in this kind of blue.

i’ve already cast on for the baby blanket that i’m making from the silky wool. i was too excited about it. so i’m switching between the baby blanket (my easy project) and the glynis socks (my more intense project) right now. in doing so, i’m ignoring a long list of other knitterly to-do’s (make tassels for my norby, knit the neckline ribbing on my raglan sweater). the time for those will come.

the whole world is blooming around here. our forsythia is gorgeous and bright, and a little unruly. so i cut some of the more exuberant branches from them. there’s plenty more exuberant ones that i’ll need a ladder to get to, but i think i’ll wait until this bunch has made its exit.